Innovation guru Scott Anthony recently shared some insights on his blog regarding change and innovation.
He indicated that six key points that seemed to be in common:
- The need for a crisis or some kind of “burning platform” to motivate transformational change
- A clear vision and strategy … that allows room for iteration
- A recognition that transformation is a multi-year journey
- A need to put the customer or consumer in the center of the transformation equation
- The critical importance of demonstrating to skeptics that different actions can lead to different results
- The need to over-communicate to employees, customers, stakeholders, and shareholders
So, whilst Scott’s comments were developed in the context of large corporate innovation in a US context, I think these insights are also important for our desire to identify and introduce productivity transforming innovations in aquaculture.
I think we may have a burning platform!
What do you think about the rest of his points?
If you would like to take a look at Scott’s post please click on this link.
I find that one of the most useful tools for helping to prioritise the most important innovations required into the future in any industry is to start by looking at some of the major changes facing that industry. Any change can result in a shift in customer satisfaction with present solutions thus leading to a potential opening for new and innovative solutions.
Some of the main changes impacting Aquaculture include:
- a shift from a production driven approach to a market driven approach with emphasis on the whole supply chain from producer to consumer
- increased globalisation resulting in greater competitive pressures, growing power of trans-national companies especially in food industry research, processing and marketing
- an exacting range of demands by consumers including product consistency, reliability of supply, food safety, product choice, and more recently, sustainability of production
- a revolution in technologies applied to aquaculture including genetic manipulation of plants and animals, precision farming and information management —this involves a trend to patented input systems
- the development of an industrialised system of aquaculture with increased vertical integration, a systems approach to aqua-industries and implementation of industry-wide quality assurance
- continuing increase in mechanisation and capital intensity
- concern for the environment, especially the issues of water quality and degradation, air quality and climate change
- reduction in the number of mainstream commercial farms, increasing farm size
- an increase in the ‘critical mass’ for aquaculture required to support up-to-date infrastructure, information systems, processing, reliable year-round supply capacity and marketing
Is the list complete? Can you help by proposing other important changes?
